UNDERTALE v0,5,1
by Iambic Brose
Summary: SEQUEL to Snippets from the Aboveground. What if instead of the Frisk we know, there was an even younger one who became lost in the Underground? This time a five-year-old Frisk who... Wait. This has happened before, hasn't it? Lost in the Underground, friends with the monsters, Saving them all... Well, Frisk would just /hate/ to ruin a good story.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: We still have a long way to go. This story is a sequel to Snippets from the Aboveground, it is very much recommended that you do not read this without having read the rest of the series!**

* * *

Frisk took off running away from the bed of golden flowers and towards the Ruins, grinning widely at seeing Flowey there. "Guess you didn't _plant_ for this, huh?"

"Literally go jump into the Core," Flowey snapped, although he couldn't stop his grin. "You are ridiculous. You are _horribly_ ridiculous- What is even the point of this!"

"Well, cause, I can try to fix things, now!" That got a curious look, Flowey tilting his head in confusion.

"Like what? You Saved everyone last time, so why go through it again? You almost _died_ last time, too. Multiple times."

"I _didn't_ Save everyone, though. That's the whole point. Trust me, things are gonna be better. It just...might take a couple tries."

"...You already have 80 years of human memories, Frisk, and you're in a five-year-old body... I know you're **DETERMINED** , but you can't handle that many Runs." Flowey sounded honestly concerned, looking very worried about the tiny human in front of him. "...I totally forgot I was almost as tall as you when this started."

Frisk only leaned down a bit, pressing a kiss to one of his petals. "I'm gonna try my best, at least."

"Weird human," Flowey huffed, wapping her on the cheek. "Fine, just find that irritating punny skeleton. At least he can keep you out of the worst of trouble." A pause, and a sudden shudder of horror. "Ugh, just had the thought of him teaching you magic..."

"Do you think he can?" Frisk paused, sitting down on the ground and looking like a tiny, innocent toddler.

"That sounds horrifying and why...are you acting all- Aw, shit." A flash and Flowey was disappearing into the ground, hiding in the shadowed corner a few feet away.

"Oh dear...how did you get here, my child?" A familiar figure was standing in the doorway, sounding confused and worried before warm, fuzzy hands were picking the small child up. There was a small gasp, and a hitch in the voice. "O-Oh, forgive me, child, I was just...overtaken by a bout of nostalgia, for some reason."

Frisk gave a small sniffle, looking helpless and okay she forgot how tiny she was when she was this old. "Where am I?"

"Ssh, it is alright, my child. I am Toriel, caretaker of the Ruins. You have fallen, it seems, from a very long way..." Toriel was easily tucking the child close to her, rubbing at her back soothingly.

Frisk paused, staring at Toriel. What was it she said, last time? "...Are you a goat?" Nailed it.

Toriel blinked at that, looking a little startled before she laughed. "No, my child. I am a monster of the Underground. We all look quite different, this is merely how I look."

"How come?" And this was nice. She forgot how nice Toriel hugs were, when she was so itty bitty.

"I am not quite sure myself, to be honest," Toriel chuckled, shifting her grip on the child as she started walking the way she had come from. "Let us continue this conversation later, my child, yes? I have much to teach your about the place you shall be staying in."

"...Have you seen my mom and dad, or maybe my brother?" Ow. That hurt. She forgot it hurt to bring that up.

"N...No, my child, I have not." Toriel, instead of setting the child down like she had been planning, instead cuddled her closer, tucking her under her chin as if trying to protect her. "I am very sorry, Frisk."

"...How do you know my name?" There was only supposed to be nostalgia at most, not- What?! Toriel only blinked down at her, head tilting.

"You told it to me, did you not?"

"No." Although...there _was_ that saying about a mother never forgetting her children.

"Nonsense, I am sure you have merely forgotten," Toriel smiled, ruffling Frisk's hair. "How else would I have known your name, after all?"

Frisk wrinkled her nose, giving a small laugh. "Cause you're smart and nice and the besteriest." Toriel only chuckled, pecking the child on the forehead before entering a room with a familiar puzzle.

"Come, my child, I will show you how these puzzles work."

"Wait wait wait." Frisk hummed, wriggling down from Toriel's arms and going over to read the panel. 'Only the fearless may go beyond this point. Fools and the brave walk the middle road.' Oh, that made a lot more sense. She went over and hopped on the tiles, pulling the lever.

The door opened easily, Toriel blinking in surprise before she was looking from Frisk, to the panel, to the door. "...I...was not expecting that to happen, I must admit, little one..."

Frisk smiled up at her. "I really like puzzles."

"Fair enough, I suppose."

::

"You wish to know how to return 'home', do you not?" Frisk had followed the path of the first Run marvelously - besides the occasional moment of being a little shit - before it ended up here. Her and Toriel in damp, darkened halls, the monster ready to seal the door to the Ruins so none would ever leave. "Ahead of us lies the end of the Ruins. A one-way exit to the rest of the Underground. I am going to destroy it. No one will ever be able to leave again. Now be a good child and go upstairs."

Okay, she got Toriel to go with her last time by acting like a baby and crying. So if she did that again... Frisk ran forward to catch onto her robe, giving a small sniff. "But- What about Mommy and Daddy and Josh?"

Toriel seemed to _physically_ waver, shaking her head for a second. "I am sorry, my child, but if you leave this place, they... _Asgore_ will you. I am only protecting you as best I know how." Even if something inside her _screamed_ that there was another way...this was the only thing she knew that could be done. There was a quiet hiccup from behind her, Frisk stopping in her tracks as she clung to Toriel's robe.

The girl muttered, "I just wanna go home..." Toriel seemed to falter much more than before, looking at the crying child and...she had made a child _cry_. How much better was she than those she scorned?

"I wish the same, sometimes, my child..." Sighing, Toriel picked the girl up carefully, rubbing a soft palm over her cheeks to clear away the tears. Wow. Okay. She hadn't been held like this in ages. That may have made more tears come, because golly. Frisk really missed this. She leaned against Toriel, feeling so much more safe and comforted than her teenaged self would admit. "This...this is your home now, Frisk. You will be safe here, and well protected. I will take good care of you, and I am sure we will have great fun together. As long as you stay here, I can protect you. You can be happy here! Do you...do you not want to be happy?"

"I just want my family," she quietly whispered. Because...this wasn't her family. At the moment, half of them didn't even _know_ her. There was a moment of pause before a quiet, broken sigh echoed throughout the cold, drafty hallway they were in.

"...I am so sorry, my child...I am so very sorry." Could she really do this, to such a small child? She was hardly older than- Than her... Maybe...maybe there was a way- ...Yes. Maybe there _was_ a way... "Perhaps...there is a way we can get you to your family, young one." Because holding this small child, and knowing that she had a family she _needed_ to see, well... It was filling her with quite the sense of **DETERMINATION**.

Frisk rubbed at her cheeks, giving a sniff. "How?" Toriel gave her a reassuring smile, heading back to the small house they had been in.

"There is something called the Barrier that keeps monsters trapped here, but...not humans. If we can get you to it, you will be able to return home. Of course, it will require a bit of preparation."

The girl leaned against Toriel, looking up at her. "...Can we?" Because yes. This was going wonderfully.

"Yes. Yes, we shall. I am _certain_ that you shall make it home." Even as she said, Toriel _knew_ it was true. She didn't know how, but she knew...the same she knew this child was hers. After all.

A mother /never/ forgot her children. As the two walked back to the house, Frisk looked over Toriel's shoulder, smiling as she gave a wave to the happy yellow flower.

Said happy yellow flower stuck his tongue out before vanishing, and...maybe this would be alright.

After all, Frisk was _filled_ with **DETERMINATION**.


	2. Chapter 2

"Don't you know how to greet an old pal, Frisk?" Frisk looked up, smiling brightly at seeing Sans. She squirmed out of Toriel's hold and ran up to him, tackling the skeleton in a hug. Sans easily caught her before spinning her around a few times, laughing brightly as he cuddled her close. "Aw, you're so cute, at this age! I forgot how cute and _tiny_ you were!" He cuddled her closer, bundling her up and nuzzling against her. "Cute tiny daughter." A few feet away, Toriel rose her eyebrow and cleared her throat. "Ah, Tori! Man, it's so nostalgic being back here and oooh, right, time things. Okay, okay, so, technically this isn't the first time we've been here, and it's kind of complicated, but we can fill you in as we go."

Frisk continued clinging to him, climbing to sit on his shoulder and _oh my god she hadn't been able to do that in forever._ "It's almost perfect."

"Almost, we still have a few people to collect," Sans snickered, snapping his fingers and nodding as his coat suddenly appeared on Frisk. "Never been so glad to be so good at teleporting things." Giggling, Frisk snuggled down on top of him, beaming at Toriel.

Toriel crossed her arms, looking a bit amused. "Explain, skeleton." The tone was more exasperated, than anything. Like a familiar 'argument.'

"Well, you're already picking things up, aren't ya? Knowing Frisk's name when she didn't tell you, acting so familiar with me when you don't know who I am, smiling so fondly... This isn't the first time we've met, ya know. And it's not the first time we've met Frisk. It's more of...a reunion." A beaming smile. "Don't worry, though, it'll make sense. _In time_."

"...Time traveling skeletons." Toriel sighed, rolling her eyes and nudging them onto the path. "Alright, then. Let's get moving, you two."

"To be fair, it's less time travel, more Reseting. We'll explain in between Pap's puzzles. Also, in case you forgot in the shock of seeing my _gorgeous_ face, I'm Sans. And Pap is my brother, Papyrus."

"You're something. Did you know that?"

"I take pride in it, these days~" There was the vaguest hint of a chuckle beside them, Sans only grinning wider. "Don't worry, this is gonna be fun." Probably. Frisk gave a small tug to his shirt, whispering to him.

"Hey, Dad. Ready to play again?"

"Game start."

::

"Ya know, I don't remember these puzzles being this frustrating," Sans mused, watching Frisk run away to change the O's into X's. "And I _still_ don't get how you're so good at all these puzzles."

Frisk paused as she stepped on the switch, giving a small shrug. "I dunno."

"...Believe it or not, this isn't the strangest thing to happen to me."

"I can believe that," Sans smiled, going over to Toriel and holding his arms out. "C'mere. You need hugs. I can sense it. Frisk can vouch for me, I'm the best hugger." Toriel rolled her eyes, tilting her head and looking at him with amusement before scooping him up in a hug.

"I've wanted to do that for a while, by the way." Sans only beamed brightly, hugging her happily and nuzzling very gently at her cheek. After all, while this was still his Tori, she was _also_ still Toriel who didn't know him too much.

"Get mushy somewhere else! We've got puzzles to solve!" Frisk was already waiting for them at the end of the area, looking every bit the pouting five-year-old.

"Aren't you supposed to be, like, 80, you eternal college student!" Sans wiggled out of Toriel's hold anyways and bouncing over to Frisk, scooping her back up to sit on his shoulders. " _Honestly_. How are you so much my child, I ask you."

"Cause you're the _second_ besteriest." Frisk hummed happily, nuzzling against the top of his head. Sans only nuzzled back, happily carrying the child as they went to the next puzzle.

"Oh? And who's first besteriest?"

"Mom." She said it as though it were obvious.

"No. That doesn't count," Sans pouted up at her. "Tori is her own special degree of perfection and beauty and perfectness. She transcends numbers."

"You're not wrong." Frisk grinned brightly up at Toriel, who was blushing a bright red. Sans paused, seeming to just realize what he had said and blushed a bit himself.

"...Frisk, I need my jacket back to hide my embarrassment."

"Never." She held tightly to it, snickering to herself.

"Tiny evil child."

::

"Come on, it's easy!" Frisk was at least holding back on calling Toriel 'Mom.' While Toriel hesitated at the end of the small 'ice rink', Sans was only skidding around expertly in tiny circles, humming under his breath and /clearly/ showing off. Frisk sighed, skating back over to her and tugging on her hand. "Come _on!_ "

"I do not think I was made to ice skate, my child." Toriel nervously tried to pull away but _tiny child she must not harm_. Still didn't mean she couldn't be stubborn about it.

" _Everyone_ can ice skate," Sans grinned, sliding back over to them with a wide smile. "Ya just gotta want to." Letting go of the woman, Frisk giggled as she spun back on the ice, skating around and looking like she was having the time of her life.

"Come on, Tori, you're great at this. You just don't know it yet," Sans soothed, gently taking Toriel's hands and tugging her onto the ice, keeping her steady as she slowly skid across the ice. "I can certainly promise that nothing bad will happen."

Frisk skated circles around them, laughing and bumping into Sans, giggling brightly as she clung to him. Sans only rolled his eyes at the action, easily skating backwards and helping Toriel get across the ice. "See, kinda fun, right? Especially when wild child children aren't crashing into you like the _last_ time."

"I have no idea what you're talking about." The girl was grinning brightly, the widest she had in years.

"Oh, so you have _no_ memory of the first time we all went ice skating as a family? And how you single handled managed to knock everyone down until it was you and me in an epic, bitter war that never ended?"

"Now that you mention, it is kinda coming back. Remind me who won?" She nudged Sans' foot, laughing. Sans only bumped his hit into her, sending her skidding a few feet away.

"Ya know, the memory is kinda murky, but I'm _sure_ we can have a rematch if you really want to." The whole time he was talking he was still gently holding Toriel's hands in her, leading her across the ice in smooth motions.

Once Toriel was safely across the ice, Frisk was smirking at Sans. "You wanna go, old man?"

"Pfft, please, I'm much too _ice_ to completely destroy a small child." Narrowing her eyes, Frisk skated into Sans, pushing at him. Sans only let himself be pushed along right to the edge before he was easily slipping out of the way, snatching Frisk by the back of her shirt before she could fall down and redirecting her towards the middle with a flick. "My skills are superior, tiny child. Admit defeat. Especially with your adorable itty bitty body."

"Never!" She turned herself around, skating at him with a laugh as she tried to tackle him to the ground. Sans only dodged, snatching her in a hug and skating back over to Toriel with a wide grin.

"Taste defeat, kiddo."

"No! No, I win!" She kicked in his hold, not trying to really do him any harm. Frisk only giggled, wriggling and squirming as he carried her away from the ice.

"Fine, fine, you win," Sans laughed, easily pinning her down in a hug and nuzzling against her. "You probably won the first time, if we're being fair."

"Yeah, I still like hearing it." She nuzzled back, kissing at his cheek. "Daaad." Whoops. There went that.

"Friiisk," Sans whined back, not even skipping a beat as he returned the kiss to her forehead. "Tiny child."

"Yeah. It's great." The girl hummed, glancing up to Toriel. The woman was staring at them in a bit of disbelief, shaking her head.

"You two..." Sans only gave her a smile, shifting to where Frisk was on his shoulders again.

"Yeah, we get that a lot, surprisingly enough."

Toriel gave a chuckle, running a hand over Frisk's scalp first, then Sans'. "Alright, let's get going, then."

"Don't worry, we totally know what we're doing, this time around."

"I'm gonna solve the word search this time."

"...Nope, okay, we're doomed."

It was when they were walking, Frisk in Toriel's arms with her chin on the woman's shoulder, that the child perked up. Seeing Flowey over Toriel's shoulder, she gave a small wave, and a thumbs up.

Flowey only gave a dramatic roll of his eyes, small smile on his face anyways before he disappeared back into the ground. Maybe Frisk's idea...wasn't _totally_ crazy.


	3. Chapter 3

"Dad. Dad. Dad. I dare you to fight Pap."

"...Stop tempting me," Sans scolded, trying not to grin. "No. I'm not- I mean, it's an idea, but I'm probably not gonna go through with it- Oh my god...the fun that could be had, though..."

"Okay. I double dog dare you." Frisk was grinning at him, bending backwards from where she was in Toriel's arms.

"You know what? I'll take that bet." Sans was pushing her up gently, so her head was once again leaning against Toriel's chest. "And stop that, you're going to hurt yourself. Tiny five-year-old body, in case you forgot." Frisk only did it again, sticking her tongue out at him. "Fine. Get headrush and then faint. I'll be there to take pictures and laugh."

"Mooom, Dad's trying to get me sick."

"Toooori, Frisk is being a brat."

"Yeah, but he started it."

"You _literally_ started it all."

"That's a lie. You were alive first. So you started it."

"That's a lie. You did the Run. So you started it."

"Yeah, but you were _literally_ alive first."

"Technically, I'm a skeleton, so I was never alive."

"Technically, you're not though, cause skeletons are nothing BUT bone. You're bone and magic."

"You literally stole that off of Mettaton's quiz show, but just switched it." Sans poked at her side, knowing her weakest tickle spot after _many_ years of being ruthless and vicious. "You cheat." Frisk immediately giggled, curling up to try and defend herself from the attacks. Which was pretty useless, but it should be given credit that she at least _tried_. "Admit defeat, tiny child."

"Ne- N- Ahahahahah!" The girl was squealing with laughter, Toriel only rolling her eyes and looking fondly amused.

"Children," she softly chided. Sans only let up a _little_ , giving a shrug as he grinned.

"I am not a children. I am a fully grown and mature monster, thank you very much." Frisk, calming down a bit, licked her hand and then wiped it on Sans' cheek, laughing at him. "...What point does that even prove?" Sans didn't even seem _bothered_ as he scrubbed at his cheek, wiping the spit away. "Don't forget you used to take naps on me and drool. A lot."

"You were the one that always drooled."

"Lies and slander. I never, not once, drooled." Sans tsked, flicking lightly at at Frisk.

"You drool," Toriel confirmed.

"...Tori. How could you betray me like this- How do _you_ know if I drool?"

"...I don't know, to be honest."

"Then it can be said that you're unsure, and since I'm the only liable account, it's decided that I don't drool."

"I'm liable," Frisk defended.

"No, you're _lie_ able, because I don't snore."

"We were talking about drooling, but yeah, you snore, too." A sudden pause, Sans looking confused before running over the words he had said.

"...W...Wait..." He needed to stop getting distracted when speaking because _that_ happened. "Okay, so, I can definitely get off-track, but I do not drool. But yes, I do snore."

"Do t- Hi, Pap-Pap!" Aww, she almost forgot she called him that! Sans was trying not to coo in adoration because _adorable_. Papyrus also seemed slightly startled and emotional, and, yup, scooping her up into a hug.

"Hello, strangely familiar human child!" Frisk leaned up, kissing Papyrus' cheek with a tiny giggle, looking completely at ease. Papyrus looked slightly startled, looking from Frisk, to Sans, and then back. "...Sans. Why do I wish to keep and protect his tiny human child?"

"I dunno, bro. Maybe she's secretly a monster pretending to be a human and you're sensing it where you're just so great."

"Yeah, I'm a monster. I'm his daughter from a different point in time space." She paused. "Both of theirs." Papyrus looked from her, to Sans, to her, to Sans, to her, and then to Sans. Sans only gave him a brilliant grin.

"...I'm an uncle." The tone was rather teary and full of awe. Toriel only looked amused, raising an eyebrow.

Frisk was looking up at the two, and if she had a tail, it'd be wagging. "This is good."

"Sans! Why did you never tell me you had a daughter?!"

"...That's a good question," Sans mused, looking unconcerned as he easily bypassed the puzzle that was _supposed_ to be the multiple tiles. "Eh, best not to linger on the past. Also, we're watching her tonight before we set off in the morning. I wish to make you suffer, so this time you're coming with."

"Pap-Pap gets to come with?!" Oh she loved being a tiny child so much. "And yeah, I'm still human."

"But, if you are human, small niece, how are you Sans' daughter- Sans?! Did you have a child out of wedlock with a human?!" Frisk was suddenly taken from Papyrus' arms, who was suddenly dunked into a snowbank with blue magic.

"Nah. Sorta adopted, but still mine." Sans happily headed to Snowdin, cuddling his cute tiny little daughter.

"...Get dunked on."

"See? Mine."

::

While Frisk ran around the living room, she may have crashed into the couch. And stubbed her pinkie toe. Which was why she was now sitting on the ground, clutching her foot and cursing like a sailor. While Papyrus and Toriel looked on in _horror_ , Sans only plucked Frisk up and set her on the couch.

"Okay, I know for a _fact_ I didn't teach you half of those." A long moment of silence. "I'm impressed-"

"SANS! OH MY _GOD_! HOW COULD YOU TEACH HER SUCH FILTHY WORDS?!"

"Hey, I only taught half of 'em, the others she probably learned when at college."

" _Fucking son of a bitching tit._ " Frisk was curled up on the couch, looking extremely like she didn't want to be there.

"SANS!"

"What? She said it, not me. 'Sides, I taught her when she was _twenty_. Last timeline."

"Dad taught it to me."

"That's a lie and you know it, young lady."

"Okay, fine, you taught me 'shit-faced bitch balls,'" she shot back, looking proud of herself as she glanced to Toriel. If she was going down, so was he.

"Yup. That one was me," Sans nodded, still watching television while not even glancing at Toriel and Papyrus. He knew he was dead. "Ya know, you can Load and save us both the pain that's about to come."

"I know."

"Evil child."

"Come, _brother_! We must wash your mouth out with soap!" Papyrus huffed as he snatched Sans by the shirt, dragging him towards the bathroom.

"...Yeah. Alright." Would at least make a funny story to tell Gaster.

"We must scrub the _filth_ from your tongue!"

"Mmkay."

"Bath included."

"Oh god no I'm so sorry please I'm sorry I swear I'll never teach her anymore swears." Sans was already trying to escape and/or teleport with his powers, Papyrus keeping him pinned with his own.

Frisk only looked to Toriel, blinking innocently and leaning against her. "I promise to do my best to not say that kind of stuff again until I'm sixteen."

"...Fine." Toriel flicked the television off and grabbed the nearby book, settling back with a quiet hum.

"...Mom?"

"No television for the rest of the night."

"...That's fair." From upstairs, there could be heard panicked screeching of the damned. "So, are you gonna help Dad?"

"Hm...no. I believe I will let Papyrus handle Sans, for his punishment." The wicked gleam in Toriel's eyes showed she knew exactly what fate she was abandoning him to. "Retribution."

"Mmkay." Frisk shifted and crawled until she was happily curled up in Toriel's lap, giving the book a small glance before settling down and letting her eyes close. Toriel only gently rubbed at her scalp, happily settling down with Frisk, her book, and the wonderful revenge that Papyrus was getting on Sans.

Teach _her_ child to swear, would he... "Love you, Mommy."

"I love you too, my child." And, yes...the simple familiarity of this scene... It filled her with **DETERMINATION** to make sure there were more like it in the future.

And she had a very good feeling there would be.


	4. Chapter 4

"Come on, come on, come on, let's go to the Waterfall!"

"Alright, alright, we're coming." It was a moment before Sans and Papyrus were exiting their house, Papyrus carrying a small backpack of 'supplies' and Sans wearing a new jacket that was in shades of blue and grey - mostly because Frisk was still wearing his usual one. Frisk was giggling and bouncing at Toriel's side, looking delighted before she gave a pause.

"...Can I bring a friend?" Sans paused, slowly narrowing his eyes as he stared at her for a moment.

"...Who's the friend."

"Yo." Sans was suddenly jumping from the word, glancing back to see the town monster kid _beaming_. "Frisk said we were going to find Undyne!"

"...Acceptable- ...Why do I not know your name..."

"It's M.K."

"...Ya know what. We're rolling with it. We've gotten this far on ridiculousness. We can probably get a bit father."

"Wow, Sans. Something on your mind?" Sans' reaction was to lift Frisk with his magic, and harmlessly drop her onto a snow pile. A pause and he was doing the same to M.K., who giggled in delight.

"Go eat a snowball, tiny child." Sans paused at feeling Papyrus tug on the jacket, the monster tilting his head at him, Papyrus just tugging a bit more and looking to be concentrating.

Frisk was only sticking her tongue out at Sans as she brushed herself off. "I _would,_ but you never _sold me one!_ " A snort of laughter, Sans brushing Papyrus off.

"First of all, I was _going_ to, but then I figured it was too much effort. Second of all, how do you even /remember/ that. It was literally 80 years ago. Third of all. Pap. Why. Why, bro, why."

"I have not seen you wear this jacket since you were a teen, Sans." Papyrus was tugging again, looking to be concentrating. "You never took it off, and then you stopped wearing it the same day that..."

"That I quit working with Alphys? Yeah. New start, and all that."

"I...suppose that's a way of putting it lightly." Sans narrowed his eyes at that, and...huh. There- It was _possible_.

"And what's the way of putting it darkly?" They were already walking along the path to Waterfall, Sans still staring at Papyrus because _could_ he be remembering Gaster? It was possible...

"I am...not entirely sure, but... Certainly not quitting." Probable. It was probable for right now, the remembering theory.

"Well, you wouldn't be wrong. Also, you're about to be tackled by a child and have a snowball shoved in your face."

" _Get dunked on!_ "

"Told ya she was my child."

"Ugh. This is worse than when you came home blabbing about how you met a girl who loved your jokes." At that, Toriel was blushing brightly and avoiding looking at them. Sans was only taking Frisk from his brother gently and then throwing him _in the river_.

"You are no longer my brother." Nodding, he cuddled Frisk and started walking again.

::

"So, you see that, right?"

"Yeah, yeah, I- That wasn't here, before."

"Neither have I, and I've been here a lot more times... Alright, this might be serious, so we have to approach it with the most upmost caution." A moment of silence between them, Sans giving Frisk a shit-eating grin. "Dare you to ding dong ditch it." Frisk ran up to it and knocked on the door, surprised when it opened immediately.

"He did it." Sans stuck his tongue out at the girl, looking as childish as she _was_.

"Nuh uh. How could I do it when I'm all the way back here."

"Cause you're you."

"You two truly _are_ children." At the voice, the both of them froze and slowly looked in the door.

"...You go in." Frisk probably wasn't expecting Sans to full out _tackle_ Gaster further into the room and to the _ground_.

Gaster only gave a sigh, looking extremely tired, but also a bit fond. " _Honestly._ " Sans was only quite happy to keep clinging and nuzzling against Gaster, Frisk following them in and hesitating in shutting the door because...it probably wouldn't trap them in forever. Probably. "I'm assuming you found your way alright, then."

"Y- Yeah- Grandpa?" Gaster only gave the girl a smile, easily righting himself and adjusting so Sans was curled in his arms, the gesture automatic and familiar.

"Hello, Granddaughter. I must admit, I didn't quite expect you two to find this door. It doesn't appear very often."

"Yeah, we really didn't expect that- Why are you so..." She gave a vague gesture to all of him, along with a shrug.

"Visible? It's in part to the room, I believe. It's similar to a pocket dimension tethered to the timeline and world you're currently going through. Think of it like a bubble resting against another. Connected, but easily popped. It doesn't form too often, and when it does, I am stuck inside for the short time it is here." A pause, and an amused look. "Also, why are you wearing his coat?"

"One, slow down I haven't had a hundred or hundreds or however many years to learn all that. Two, cause I can." Gaster only rolled his eyes, lightly tugging on Sans' _own_ jacket, which he hadn't seen him wear in a _very_ long time.

"No. I am not releasing you. I am clinging to you for as long as we are in this room." To spite him, Sans clung even tighter, looking very stubborn.

"You know, that explains a lot." Frisk walked over to Gaster, looking him up and down before finally giving a nod and holding her arms out to him. "I demand hugs."

"Remind me again how you two aren't _blood_ related," Gaster snorted, obliging anyways and easily picking Frisk up as well, looking far too used to holding two needy children at the same time. "Honestly."

Frisk only gave a tiny gasp, looking to be in awe. " _That's where you got your amazing hugs._ " She only snuggled closer, happily humming and grinning widely. Sans was much the same, if not a bit more quiet and subdued, Gaster snorting as he settled down against the wall to get more comfortable. He had a feeling these two wouldn't be leaving for a while.

"Huh, never seen this..." Gaster sighed, sounding worn already. _Honestly_ how did these kids get into so much _mischief._

"Hello, Asriel." Flowey was then popping up next to Frisk and maybe wrapping a vine around her ankle protectively. "Oh, please, it was only once and I warned you ahead of time what would have happened if you had continued on that path." Frisk had looked startled at the vine around her ankle before she was patting Flowey's head gently, happy to see him.

" _You killed me eighty four times!_ " Gaster only gave a nonchalant shrug, scratching at the top of Sans' head.

"You killed my sons."

" _Eighty four!_ "

"I warned you not to touch them. You were the one who chose not to heed my advice."

Frisk cleared her throat, doing her best Toriel imitation. " _Children._ " It must have been good since Sans had automatically flinched and buried closer to Gaster, Flowey only sinking down a bit and ducking his head. Frisk giggled, looking amused. "I'm the besteriest."

"You're not wrong," Gaster chuckled, ruffling Frisk's hair. "I have a feeling you three are going to be staying here a while, then. Time doesn't really pass outside the door, so you have no need to worry about others searching for you."

"Oh, good. Because you're not escaping. For fornever."

"I figured as much."

It was a good hour or so of conversation, teasing, and catching up on things Gaster might have missed - such as Papyrus joining the journey this time around - before he was tilting his head and glancing at the room. "Hm. Seems the room will be disappearing soon."

"How do you know?"

"Yeah, how do _you_ know?"

"Because."

Frisk looked up at him innocently. "Cause why?" There was a sudden groan between both Sans _and_ Flowey.

"Because."

"Cause why?"

"Because."

"Cause why?"

Ten minutes and Sans was covering both of their mouths, sighing in _exhaustion_. "How about we call it tie and say you're both stubborn as hell." Flowey had only been banging his head against the floor, trying to lose consciousness.

"He started it." Gaster only rolled his eyes and nudged them all towards the door, sighing at Sans. Who was still attached to his coat. And _not letting go_.

"Sans. Your wife is waiting on you."

"She is not my wife!" ... _Dammit_. Sans was sulking _fiercely_ as he was pried loose and set down, and, _ugh. Ugh_. "You're evil and I should burn this jacket just to spite you."

"But you won't." Gaster smiled as the two headed towards the door, Flowey disappearing back into the ground. "Bye, now." Sans only rolled his eyes and let himself be nudged out the room, hood over his head and /ugh/ he hated the 'byes'. They sounded so...cheery. ...Maybe he shouldn't have worn this jacket. Not considering Gaster had been the one to give it to him _and_ he had last worn it on.../that/ day...

Frisk's hand on the door, she blinked at Gaster for a moment as she started to close it. "Cause why?" With that, she was closing it with a firm snap. A flash and the door was gone, Sans looking to Frisk, the two staring silently for a minute.

"...My child." And, yes. Hug the tiny daughter.

"I won."

::

At hearing a familiar rustle of grass - M.K. having run ahead - Frisk narrowed her eyes before Papyrus was waving and speaking _very_ loudly. "Ah! Undyne! Come meet my human niece!"

" _Human?!_ " Narrowing her eyes at the exclamation, Frisk reached her hand out carefully and ruffled the leaves in front of her. There was suddenly a spear right where the ruffle had been, and, yup. That was Undyne. And Frisk may have given a tiny squeak. Blue stop signs.

"Whoop, there it iiss," Sans muttered under his breath, looking amused. He then glanced to Frisk, grinning wider. "Blue stop signs?"

"Blue what?" He would not win. Sans only snickered under his breath, shifting in front of Frisk as Undyne jumped down, eyes slightly widening at seeing _Toriel_.

"Your Majesty!" At once, the Captain of the Royal Guard was kneeling. "I see you've captured a human. Do you need an escort to King Asgore?"

"Is this the part where I run," Frisk whispered to Sans.

"Nah, too time consuming," Sans waved off. "Hey, Undyne, this tiny human is my daughter, and Tori's, and we're getting her home, kay?"

"...Wha... Huh?"

"Don't worry about it. But we wouldn't turn down that escort, of course." Since Sans was in the front of the group, no one saw his left eye turn a blazing blue, three large _beastly_ skulls flicking into existence behind the group, pure _energy_ rolling off them. "You're gonna help us, right?"

"Uh, r-right, uh..." She looked over to Papyrus helplessly because _what the fuck._ Sans should not have that power. And the Queen- His daughter- What was going on?!

"Don't worry, Undyne! You will adjust quickly to the tiny human, she is quite delightful!" All traces of Sans' magic had vanished in a flash, the skeleton looking perfectly relaxed and at ease, tugging the two kids along - Frisk because startlement and M.K. because _hero worship._

Frisk easily slipped out of his hold, falling into step alongside Undyne and smiling up at her brightly. "Howdy, Undyne!"

"Hi, ah...human..." Undyne was nudged along by Papyrus, the Royal Guard Captain looking so very confused and lost and...what. The. Fuck. First Toriel returned, then _Sans had a daughter?!_ The human she could handle, Toriel she could deal with, Sans having as much magic as a _boss monster_ she could...start to get a grip with. _But him having a daughter?!_ There was a small nudge at her side, and Frisk was holding out a popsicle to her. She looked completely innocent, only tilting her head to the side, a bit. "...Tha...nk...you...I think?"

Undyne ever so cautiously accepted the treat, glancing to Sans to get a bright smile with _blue_ eyes, and yup. This was suddenly a very delicious treat. At her side, Frisk may have made a small growl and sudden movement, causing her to jump and skitter behind Papyrus. "...I am starting to see how this child is yours, Sans." Frisk only giggled, hopping over to walk beside Sans before attempting to climb him, pulling on his jacket.

Sans looked far too used to the action, letting her get settled on his shoulders before a flick of magic was pulling the hood over her eyes. "Welp, to Alphys we go, then."

"Wow, you really pulled the wool over my eyes!"

"I guess you could say I _cottoned_ on to what you were planning."

"Uuuggghhh."

And the thought of the future and her home once again being so close...it filled Frisk with **DETERMINATION**.


	5. Chapter 5

"...Ohhh."

"Oh?"

"You're a _fish._ "

"No. I am the Captain of the Royal Guard and the strongest monster in all of the Underground!" Sans only 'snerk'ed, trying to hide a laugh.

" _That's_ why you live in _Water_ fall." At that Sans _did_ laugh, Undyne only huffing and rolling her eyes.

"I could live in a place besides Waterfall if I wanted!" She was in her usual outfit of a black tank and loose pants, Sans having made her change out of her armor before joining them. During that time, M.K. had gone home as well, not wanting to miss lunch or worry his parents _too_ badly.

"Not Hotland."

"I could!" Sans snorted again. "Shut up, skeleton!"

"Why don't ya make me, Undyne."

"Nuh uh," Frisk interjected. "Wanna know why?" Undyne sighed, mentally counting to ten before nodding, and, yes. Must not kill the tiny human child.

"Why."

"Cause the one place you'd want to be is too hot for you, OHHHHHH." A loud _snort_ of laughter from Sans, who was trying to keep it together and failing miserably.

"...What?"

"Alphys is too hot for you, _OHHHHH!_ " It took a minute, but Undyne was slowly summoning a spear into her hand.

"Forgive me, Your Majesty, but I must destroy this human."

Frisk grinned, tugging on Sans' jacket. "Dad. Dad. Daddy. Can I fight her?" Sans only looked from her, to Undyne, and then shrugged.

"We still got a bit of distance until Hotland, so now's as good a time as any, if you really want to."

" _YES!_ " Sans rolled his eyes and set the girl down on the ground, Undyne looking startled and raising an eyebrow and wait...she was actually getting to fight the tiny human? That...that wasn't expected. "Come on, come on, come on, _fight me!_ " Sans snorted, nudging her forward a bit.

"Destroy her will to fight, and have fun, sweetie!"

Frisk grinned back at him sweetly, "Okay, Daddy! Love you!"

"Mhm, no overdoing it, either. Five-year-old body, so your limits are restricted to ten minutes total use per day."

"Aw, what?!" Feeling her Soul pulled into battle, she didn't even look over as she blocked the attacks. "But Daaaddyyy." While Undyne slowly questioned what reality was anymore, Sans only shook his head, looking serious.

"No. Ten minutes per day, any over that and you can get seriously hurt."

" _Fine._ Stupid rules that you break all the time anyway." She looked back to Undyne, tilting her head. "So...are you gonna do it?"

"That's it!" Undyne might have then snapped and tried to _destroy_ the tiny human child. At that, Frisk was grinning wickedly and cackling as she blocked the attacks.

"Really? _That's_ it?" Instead of the attacks having the few moments of pause between them as they usually did, these were rapid fire and weren't slowing down in the least. All emotion disappeared from Frisk's face as she moved her Soul to block the attacks, watching them like a warrior.

And while Undyne certainly hadn't expected the child to be this skilled (it was almost like _she_ had trained her!) that didn't mean she couldn't enjoy herself! After all, this was shaping up to be a rather fun battle! "You know, you have a spear for a reason." Frisk was eying the spear, watching it carefully.

"I like your spirit, human!" With that, Undyne was seamlessly moving through her attacks to use her spear. Frisk waited until the last moment to move out of the way, taking the cut to her leg rather well. The spear now on the ground at her side, she rose an eyebrow.

"Is it my turn?" Undyne grinned wider, and, yes, she liked this child!

"Well come on, human! Let's see what you got!" Behind them, Sans was holding Toriel back from going full protective mother at seeing Frisk get a cut. Frisk barely even moved, the spear trembling a small amount as a _red_ aura flickered around it. The weapon floated into the air before slowly turning towards Undyne. It flew at her like a bullet.

"I like your spirit, fish," Frisk mocked. Undyne was slipping the shot and grabbing the spear, taking it back before pausing and WHAT. THE. FUCK.

"WHAT. THE. _FUCK_. HUMANS AREN'T SUPPOSED TO HAVE MAGIC!" Sans was only beaming and looking extremely proud, near _radiating_ joy and yes. Good tiny child.

The girl was smiling just as widely, looking the perfect picture of innocence. "Daddy taught me how." She threw in a childish laugh, for effect. Undyne slowly looked to Sans, remembering _very clearly_ seeing him fight a... A something. An enemy. But it was clear and it was terrifying.

"Nope. I'm out. I admit defeat just this once because I do not wanna fuck with the kid who was taught magic by _him_." Sans only smiled sweetly, the smile near the exact same as Frisk's.

Frisk clapped, get Soul disappearing. "I win! Oh man, that was great! I gotta tell..." She dropped off, glancing to Toriel. "My brother. He's been wanting me to be able to defend myself." Nailed it.

"Gee, I wonder why that is," Sans snorted, looking rather amused as he went over to Frisk, studying her for a moment before giving a snap of his fingers, the cut on her leg healing. "Oh, huh, that worked-"

" _What the fuck you have healing magic too?!_ "

"New thing I've been working on. Glad to see it works."

" _Neat-o._ Did you get that from Grandpa?"

"A bit," Sans hummed, checking Frisk over before scooping her up, Papyrus and Toriel doing their best to comfort a broken Undyne. "I remembered he did something kinda similar whenever we were hurt, but he never actually taught me. Had to figure that one out myself."

"Cool." She paused, looking back to Undyne from Sans' arms. "Do you know my name?"

"Uh...no?"

Frisk grinned brightly, looking delighted. "Howdy, Undyne! I'm Frisk! Frisk the Human! Golly, you must be so confused!" An ungodly snort of laughter from Sans almost drowned out the offended gasp a few dozen feet away, Toriel only narrowing her eyes at the two and...no. No. Not going to question it. Just get through the week.

"...This human child scares me."

"I still don't think she's human."

"Nah, she is, she just also happens to be the best on there is."

"Daaad!"

"Friiisk."

"You're rude." A pause, Frisk snickering to herself. "What kind of a name is Flowey?" It was then she and Sans were tripped to the ground, both falling with startled squeaks. Frisk only huffed, glaring behind her. "Rude brother!" ...Whoops.

"...This lifetime is going to be great," Sans nodded, and, yes. Yes. The thought of the future - of Frisk _succeeding_ in what she wanted to do - it _very_ much filled him with **DETERMINATION**!


	6. Chapter 6

"Sans- Undyne- Who the hell is _that?!_ " Sans blinked at Alphys' sudden start, looking to where she was staring to see... Gaster. She was-

"Wait, wait, wait. Alph, are you telling me you can _see_ him?!" That wasn't supposed to be possible...maybe people who could see the timelines and understand Saves and Loads and things, but not- This was _not possible_.

"See who- What _is_ that?!" Alphys was looking the tiniest bit panicked, staring at Gaster. Gaster blinked, giving a small wave.

"Ah, I see I was not the only one to see the strange force!" Papyrus was nodding, seeming to examine Gaster.

Frisk tugged on Sans' jacket, looking confused as she stared at Alphys and Papyrus. "Uh, Dad?"

"Science does not support this." Sans looked rather broken, quietly walking over to snatch a pen and some paper off Alphys' desk before sitting down on the floor and starting to scribble out numbers. "I suppose with the long stretch of stable timeline...but it was Reset to the point where it was scrambled. There's simply no way...perhaps those who were in close- But, no, that wouldn't- Science does not support this, Frisk. Numbers are not working!"

"Add in the possibility that he may come back into existence, somewhat soon. It would make sense, building it up instead everything happening all at once." Frisk was at his side, taking the pencil and scratching in some numbers. "That still doesn't explain- Grandpa, help."

" _I didn't see this coming._ " Gaster was sounding about as lost as Sans, who was now digging in his jacket pockets and pulling out aged, crinkled papers that he started spreading out. " _Sans. I didn't see this coming._ " And maybe a touch panicked.

"Okay, okay, so, factoring in the possibly of revival over time with his form stabilizing, I mean..." The numbers and calculations were faded, but they fit in perfectly with the new ones being made. "Huh...little guilt tripping optimistic me may have been on to something..."

" _Grandpa?_ " Alphys looked helpless, staring at them before glancing over to Undyne and Toriel. "You see him too, right?" Papyrus was only watching the three of them with a frown. Did that mean...

"I am afraid we do not see him," Toriel frowned, and, hm...Sans had filled her in on a few things, Gaster being one of them, so she new that him being seen _should_ be impossible...

"Nope, I ain't seeing anything except you all going crazy." Undyne was cautiously poking Papyrus, who was silent and looking to be on the verge of a breakthrough. "And maybe Papyrus breaking."

"Wait..."

Gaster sighed, " _Oh dear._ " He threw a look to Sans, gesturing for him to explain. Sans only gave him a look of 'how the fuck am I supposed to explain?' before sighing and standing up, sticking his hands in his pockets.

"So...the person you are seeing is the former Royal Scientist Dr. W. D. Gaster. He was the one in charge of the Core project and also happened to the father to both myself and Papyrus. Due to complications with the Core when it was brought online, his body was destroyed and his very sense of being scattered across both time and space. Due to the fact we're so close to the Core right now, which is a large source of raw energy and also the focal point of where it began, gives you a reason as to why he can be seen. The only reason you are seeing him now, I can assume, is due to the strong personal ties you had with him, as well as the fact that his being, or his Soul, depending, has slowly been stabilizing over the large amount of time since it first happened." And, really...it was very easy to see how Sans had been one of the best scientists the Underground had ever seen.

Gaster gave a long, sweeping bow, grinning widely. " _A pleasure._ "

Frisk rolled her eyes, sighing heavily. "How am I even related to you two?"

"It's a mystery~" Sans snickered, looking vastly amused as he looked to Alphys and Papyrus. "So, any questions? Also now is a good time to faint if you need to. I know I did a couple times in the beginning there." That said, Papyrus was quickly falling to the ground, looking down for the count.

"...Former what?" Alphys was looking ready to go much the same way.

"Nice job, Dad. You killed them."

"Yup. To be fair to Pap, he fainted last time I told him all this, and then I fainted when I first figured it out. So all in all, not too bad a reaction."

Gaster sighed again, shaking his head as he looked at Sans. " _I'm disappointed that you got that from me._ " He paused, looking towards Alphys cautiously. " _Can you...hear me?_ " Alphys looked from the faint blur of darkness she could see to Sans.

"Is he...saying something?"

"Sorta," Sans hummed, tilting his head. "Faint murmurs and vague echoes?" A nod, Sans nodding himself. "Yeah, it gets stronger to the Core everyone is. It's fine. He was just asking if you could hear him, which you kinda can."

" _Oh thank God, I can still snark about her terrible robots._ " Gaster looked physically relieved, leaning against Sans a bit. Sans, of course, was trying to cover his mouth to hide his horrible laughter because, _really_. It wasn't like he was _wrong._

"What...what he'd say."

"Nothin', nothin'. Don't worry about it, Alph, it's fine." Probably didn't help that he was still snickering, but still.

"He said you built terrible robots." At the offended sound, Frisk only glanced to Gaster, looking proud of herself. "I know where my loyalties lie."

"...Definitely my child," Sans nodded. "She does the same selling out I did to you all the time."

"Oh yeah, Mom, Dad said that he doesn't like your snail pie."

"Ya know, maybe we should use some duct tape...I'm not against it if you are." Especially considering Toriel's looks were _glacial_. "Also. Frisk. You are evil, you know that, right?'

"But...you still love me, right?"

Gaster snorted, looking incredibly amused. " _She's certainly your daughter._ " Sans only rolled his eyes and scooped Frisk into his arms, happily nuzzling against her and content with the chaos that had been caused around them.

"Yes, I very much love you, tiny evil mastermind." Let's see... Papyrus unconscious and Undyne trying to wake him up, Alphys questioning reality, Toriel completely fed up, and started and confused Gaster. "You do the Lord's work, my child."

"So, when does the robot crash in?"

With that, there was a rumbling, and a wall crashing to the ground. "Hello, darlings~! Who's ready for a quiz?" Sans only shook his head, although he was amused to note Papyrus had woken up at the voice and was looking at Mettaton in complete awe and fan-stricken adoration.

"This is gonna be interesting, this time around..."

"Ooh, I think I see a volunteer!" Mettaton hummed, looking around the room. They remained turned towards Papyrus for a moment before pointing to Frisk. "You!"

"Wow. This is such a shocking surprise," Sans 'exclaimed', voice dead and completely monotonous. "Oh, no, Frisk. I wonder how you shall ever defend yourself against this terrifying robot."

"I don't know," she responded similarly. "It sounds impossible."

" _They're called Mettaton because you 'metta' bet they weigh a ton._ " A snort of laughter from Sans, who _tried_ to look annoyed.

"I was _trying_ to be sarcastically dry, but no. You had to ruin it."

" _As dry as my humor._ "

"Of course, I had to pick it up from someone. After all, you're so easy to _see_ through."

"Suddenly, everything is so clear to me," Frisk commented. "Alright, robot, let's go. First question. D, more answers. Next question." Mettaton hadn't even asked the question yet, or pulled Frisk into battle.

There was a moment where Mettaton and Alphys both stared at Frisk, Alphys the first to throw her hands up in frustration. "Ugh! You _are_ Sans' daughter! Know-it-all attitude included!" Sasn only grinned in delight, nuzzling against Frisk in delight.

Frisk was doing much the same, giggling. "Yeah. I know. Also, Asgore Dreemurr." Mettaton was glancing down at the cards in his hands, back up at Frisk, and then making irritated noises, Alphys throwing her arms up again.

"Alright, fine! We'll skip ahead! Who is Alphys in love with!" ...Alright, Mettaton panicked, sue him.

"Undyne," Frisk answered without hesitation. She glanced back. Whoops. Oh well. They needed to talk about it, anyway. This time, it was Undyne who was fainting, Papyrus panicking and trying to wake her while Alphys blushed a very _bright_ shade of red.

"This is turning out to be a great day," Sans decided, happy to observe even /more/ chaos.

"I love knowing things." She paused, looking over to Alphys as Gaster chuckled. "She likes you back."

"Welp. That's two monsters down and out for the count," Sans mused, setting Frisk down to scribble a few more things across the pages, looking contemplative at a certain string of numbers, and, huh...enough of _his_ magic and maybe... "So far, off to a good Run."

Pouting, Frisk tugged on Sans shirt and looking miserable as she held her arms out to him. "Daaaddyyy."

Toriel only chuckled, scooping the child up. "There there, my child. Let's see what can be made for lunch, hm?"

"I can tell you right now that the only thing in that fridge is raman and other food that shouldn't be eaten by anything _living_. Or unliving, for that matter," Sans snorted, pulling a paper closer to him and scribbling a bit faster. "...Wow. Didn't expect the possibility of that working..."

" _Don't forget to carry the number over._ " Toriel was setting to making what she claimed to be the best ramen they'd ever had. Papyrus had managed to wake Undyne - who conveniently forgot the last five minutes had ever happened - before both went to waking Alphys, Sans only scooting the papers a bit more into order and flipping some over to work out new plans. " _And what are you up to, little one?_ "

"A thing. A thing that is possibly possible, possibly." Sans hummed, flicking his hand and teleporting a worn, aged blueprint to hand, spreading it out to show it was specs on the Core. "Ooh, okay, so that's the output level. Geez, it's been a while."

" _There hasn't been much in the way of upgrades for it, so that should be fairly accurate._ " Sans hummed, spreading it out a bit more and starting to scribble in the margins, the handwriting matching up perfectly to what was faded and worn.

"Fairly. I'd rather be more exact- Hey- Hey, Alphys." Seeing she was still passed out on the floor, Sans rolled his eyes. "Mew Mew Kissy Cutie 2 was better than the first."

" _How dare you!_ " Alphys had shot up to sitting immediately, pausing to blink. "...Wait..."

"Yeah, yeah, no, have a crisis later. Have you done any upgrades to the Core that affected the overall percentage of the outputted power?"

"S...ans?" And shadow hanging over him... Almost like... "Ahh..."

"Okay, I know fainting didn't make you forget that I was here," Sans huffed, rolling his eyes. "Have you done any upgrades to the Core?"

"Not really, no- Did I miss something?" Like time travel? A glance around showed that, no, she definitely didn't. Then... What... The only thing he was missing for him to _be_ his past self was the white lab coat.

"What- No. Why?" Sans was only half paying them attention anymore, already back to scribbling in the notes and doing more calculations, teleporting another blueprint to hand - also one on the Core. "What- No. That seems horribly unethical, why- Oh, aha. Now I see the notes where it was _corrected_. Because _someone_ sped through calculations~" There was indeed a crossed out, hazy font that could just barely be ready, scribbled over with Sans' own handwriting.

" _Excuse you. Did you want it pretty, or did you want it done?_ "

"It was horribly unethical and you know it," Sans shot back, scribbling some more numbers before nodding, and, yes...yes, this might work. "When at rest, how long can you stay corporal?"

" _At this point? Near fifteen minutes. Why?_ "

"...Gaster?" Sans startled at hearing the name from Alphys, looking up and beaming at her in delight, looking _exactly_ like the easily excited teen he used to be - he wouldn't be surprised himself if a lab coat was suddenly dropped on him.

"Well, _someone_ is finally remembering."

"...Wha?"

" _...Wait, she actually remembered who I- Ohh. Right, because you look as you did when you were a teenager, therefore this scene most likely brought up memories._ "

"...You know what, we're stuck here until Tori finishes her crusade of feeding us, so might as well go full out." With that, Sans was walking to another room and sounding like he was digging things around and knocking a few things over. Undyne only stared after him, eyes narrowed.

"...I just noticed, but...why does he call the Queen 'Tori'..."

"Cause. She's Tori." Sans was already heading back over to his notes and blueprints, gathering them up in his arms - and almost tripping - before setting them down on a desk, now wearing an old white lab coat, and an aged pair of glasses. "Funnily enough, I actually found my old glasses, too."

"...Ahhh..." Alphys looked to be a bit in shock, glancing to Papyrus because this was not right why was Sans looking like he did when he was a teen why was Gaster there. Papyrus only gently patted her head.

"There, there, my friend! Try not to let his foolish time and space antics get to you too much!" Although it was slightly disconcerting because Sans _did_ look exactly like he did when...when something...terrible had happened? It was all so...

"I sense memory progress," Sans snickered, pushing a chair up to the desk and kneeling on it instead of sitting, already back to making notes and corrections, and making a new sketch in the corner of one of the blueprints. "To be fair, I never grew past teen stages because the freakin' giants are beings of cruellness."

Frisk laughed, climbing onto the chair and sitting next to Sans, since there was clearly enough room. "It's why you're so itty bitty and why I'm gonna be taller than you. _Adorable._ "

"This is a role reversal I do not like," Sans pouted, lifting Frisk up onto the table and setting her down, kissing her forehead. "You are too cruel to me, tiny child."

"I know."

"Frisk, are you torturing your father, again?"

The girl looked up at Sans, calling back to Toriel. "Maybe."

"She is," Sans answered right after her, shifting her to pull a paper of calculations out and start adding to them, pausing to match everything up and chew on the tip of his pencil. "Mm...it _could_ work...or it could leave me dust... Indecision."

" _How about the option that_ _ **doesn't**_ _turn you into dust._ "

"I mean, it wouldn't be the _first_ time it happened," Sans shrugged, scratching a few things out and writing new things in it's place.

"Daaad."

"Wait, what?!"

"SANS! You what?!"

"Fine, fine, I won't do an option that turns me into dust," Sans waved off, tapping his pencil against the blueprints for a bit. "Hm..." He glanced to Frisk, dragging her closer before whispering something quietly in her ear. Frisk grinned brightly, nodding her head and gesturing to Gaster before tracing a small picture in the air. "Perfect. Means I _won't_ be turning to dust with my stupidity. Although I can solve one, if you can take care of two."

"What did you _think_ I was doing, all of last time?"

"Crying." Frisk gave him a small shove, rolling her eyes.

"I was five!"

"Itty bitty cutie who was scared of everything. So adorable." Sans was quite happy teasing the girl, moving to grab another paper near the far back of the table. And then slip off his chair since he was _standing_ on it where he had to try and _reach_ the paper. A squeak, a crash to the floor, and he was nodding. "Yup. Just like teen years."

" _Indeed. Are you going to be alright, then?_ " Gaster gave a quiet chuckle, looking amused.

"Dad?" Frisk was peeking at him from over the table, tilting her head. There was a quiet gasp from Sans, who was darting up with something in his hand, the skeleton looking _giddy_.

"I found my old smoke bombs! I didn't know they were in here, still! Oh my god...do they still work..."

" _No._ "

Alphys and Papyrus each looked _horrified._ "Oh god, no." Sans was only grinning wickedly and lighting one with a spark of magic, tossing it down on the ground. It was five seconds before the _entire lab_ was filled up with bright blue smoke.

"They do!"

" _Sans!_ You better get this smoke out of here in the next thirty seconds!"

"Whaaat. There's no way I can do it in 30 seconds! Come on, Alph, lighten up a little. I mean, at least you can see through the smoke, yeah? So it's not _that_ bad." A tiny gasp. "Oh my god the black one is here..."

" _NO!_ " The shout was from everyone in the building, Toriel and Gaster included.

"Whaaat. It's only, like, what? Twenty minutes of total darkness? It's _totally_ fine. Aw man, I have no idea why I ever stopped making these." He was already going from one end of the room to the other to open the doors, letting the smoke fan out.

"Sans..."

" _Just no._ "


	7. Chapter 7

"Alph. You're not getting out of this." In keeping with the theme of collecting party members, Sans had been trying to get Alphys to join them. Mostly by dragging her along and trying to use sheer force to tug her off the doorframe. "Dammit, no! You are engaging in social behavior with friends who deeply care for you and admire you!"

Undyne groaned, somewhat stamping her foot. "Alph, come _on._ We've gotta get going. You know the most about the Core. Hell, you're probably the person I trust most." She paused, blinking and giving a blush. "Not that I trust _anyone_ very much, or anything."

"Alph. Alph, come on, you do nothing /but/ watch anime. You gotta be seeing the signs here." Sans was tugging her again. "Alph, I swear to god, either you're coming with us, or I reveal it's been since we were _teens_."

"Fine! Fine! I'm coming! See? Not clinging!" Sans only rolled his eyes and dragged her along to where the others were waiting, nudging her along.

"Alright, time to deal with Me- With the robot who wants to destroy humans. Which...which puzzle comes next? The vent one, right?"

"Dad. Really. I think it's a bit obvious, at this point." Frisk was tugging on his hood from where she was in Toriel's arms.

"Excuse me for not having a perfect memory. Most Resets were within two years max, it's been eighty. I can hardly be expected to remember every single event that happened last time around."

"Still. Really? I mean, if you didn't blow it, I totally did. Hey, can you just float me across that entire tile thing, this time? I really don't want my legs in that much pain, again."

"Again?!" Sans only soothingly patted at Toriel's back, leaning against her a bit.

"Or I can just destroy it like I did last time. Not like anyone will miss the stupid thing." It was ridiculous even by _puzzle_ standards. And he hated it. _So_ much. "Nah, I'm gonna destroy it."

"Nooo." Frisk whined, looking miserable. "I wanna solve it, just without the stupid time limit!" Sans made the mistake of glancing at her face, lasting all of four seconds before he was sighing.

"Fine, fine, I'll deal with the time limit. But once you're clear, _then_ I'm gonna destroy it."

The girl pouted, crossing her arms. "Fiiine."

"We spoil you too much. And by we, I mean I horribly spoil you and am weak."

"Yeah. But it's still nice." Frisk looked over Toriel's shoulder, smiling brightly, shooting a dazzling smile.

"Yeah, yeah. To be fair, I blame Dad. He spoiled us, too. Hardly my fault I learned such terrible habits."

" _I did no such thing!_ "

"You took off from work when we were sick and every time I asked for hugs you gave them to me. I call that spoiled."

"That's...not being spoiled. That's like getting exactly what you want when you want it no matter what." Sans only shrugged, looking unbothered.

"I only ever wanted hugs and I got them. That was my spoilment."

" _You were such a quiet child..._ " At this point, Undyne, Alphys, and Papyrus had gone on a /bit/ ahead to try and solve the vent puzzle. There was a lot of swearing from Undyne.

"Yup! Prooobably because you were always under so much stress and I didn't want to make it worse. There was a reason I took up work in the labs instead of just doing my own stuff at home." He was still rather quiet, when being himself. Otherwise he was loud, obnoxious, and made constant puns. There was probably a 'scarred childhood' diagnoses in there somewhere.

"I'm sorry, Gaster, I don't think I ever gave you a proper hello." Toriel gave a nod to Gaster's general direction.

Gaster looked rather unamused. " _Go get dunked on._ "

"What did you just say to me?"

" _Nothing, ma'am._ " A pause. " _Can you hea-_ "

"No, I can't hear you, if that's what you're asking."

Sans was only beaming in pride, looking very pleased. "See? You doubted me when I told you how terrifying she could be." Perfect, perfect, perfect Tori~

" _...How did she know?_ " The oldest looked incredibly confused, and a bit scolded. Sans only shrugged, looking as if he didn't even know himself.

"Most likely guess? Motherly instinct. The truth? She's too incredible to quantify with numbers. Her and Frisk both." Because, really...the things those two did that could change _everything_ in the timeline. It was nothing short of incredible. Frisk was leaning against Toriel, humming as she held back a yawn. San raised an eyebrow at the nearly given yawn, looking a bit amused. "Ya know, it's a bit upsetting how big this place is. Gonna take us at least an hour until we get to Mettaton again."

"Yeah. We should- Let's play a game. Let's do that." She was very obviously fighting her sleepiness, her eyes already half-lidded.

"Let's play a game of who can keep their eyes closed the longest." Sans was nudging Toriel and making grabby motions for Frisk, because, really. He had been the _expert_ at getting Frisk to take her naps. Though Toriel gave a pout of a frown, she handed her over.

"That's a stupid game. Like your face." Sans only hummed and shifted her to where she was tucked under his chin, one arm keeping her supported while the other rubbed small circles over her shoulder blades.

"I, personally, find it to be a rather fun game." The small hum had become the humming of a song, soft and quiet and just barely heard over the _others_ who were all arguing on how to _properly_ complete the puzzle. Frisk sighed, rubbing at her eyes as she wiggled down from his hold and walking over to the puzzle. She pushed her way through them and took control of the panel. Staring up at the screen blankly, she moved the joystick a couple times before jamming the button and walking away.

"Just until the next one." Sans snorted, but picked her back up to take her to it, looking amused.

"You _are_ the only one who can do them, apparently." The girl grumbled a few _choice words_ underneath her breath, leaning against him. Sans only timed it with a cough so not even _Toriel_ could make out exactly what had been said.

It was after the next blaster puzzle was solves - almost a minute after - that Frisk was fast asleep in Sans' arms, the skeleton still quietly humming under his breath and looking perfectly content. Until he was tripping on a vine that hadn't _been_ there when he stepped there. The action was a quick teleport to right himself before he could fall, barking a very nasty thing in a very unfamiliar language and bristling with indignation. There was the sound of _someone_ blowing a raspberry behind him, and then silence. " _I swear to fuck I'm gonna fucking keep weed killer in the house at all fucking times the little bastard._ " There was a tug to his jacket, Frisk looking up at him with an eye open to a slit.

" _I didn't know you knew that language,_ " Gaster commented.

" _Hey, you're the one who used to speak it all the time around itty bitty us and swear when a project didn't go to plan. You should have been more careful._ " Switching to English, he soothed Frisk back to sleep. "Fine, fine, I won't harm the weed. You know I won't, I just yell at him and then tell multiple puns." A quiet hum, and it appeared that Frisk had fallen back asleep as easily as she'd woken up.

" _...Your daughter in more ways than one._ " Sans opened his mouth to respond before pausing, nodding, and then shrugging.

"You probably wouldn't be wrong. Just so happens she outgrows her naps. I do not. Because naps are great and perfect and people should stop disrespecting the almighty nap." Even if every time he 'napped' it was because his body forcefully shut itself down to protect him from his overwhelming magic. It was all he could do some days just to stay awake through it.

" _Speaking of..._ " Gaster crossed his arms, tilting his head at Sans. Sans only tilted his head back, looking innocently curious as to what Gaster could be talking about. It was made all the creepier by the fact it looked /genuine/. Sighing, Gaster only shook his head. " _You're lucky I care about you._ " With that said, he was picking Sans up and thanking every power that might be for his corporeality.

Sans blinked in startlement, curling around Frisk and fighting off a yawn because he had probably been fighting off a 'nap' for a few hours. "Thought you only had fifteen minutes."

" _I can flicker it on, or off. Besides, Toriel's arms are empty._ "

"...Wait, what?" And no. He was _not_ sleepy. Not at all, he was completely and totally awake and ooh Frisk _had_ gotten that behavior from him...

" _She's weak, to you._ "

"...Still not making sense. Gonna be honest, things stopped making sense after the lab." And no, dammit, his eyes were not drooping. He was completely and totally...totally falling asleep. "You're evil."

" _I know._ " He could last fifteen minutes. And since they were going to the Core? He could last longer. Sans huffed, still forcibly trying to stay awake.

"I am going to run up your time just to spite you, I hope you know. I will tota...ss...totally do it..."

" _I know._ "

"'M serious." Just focus on staying awake. Even if Gaster hugs were rare due to circumstances and he adored all hugs and cuddles - especially Gaster's, if he was being honest. But, no. He could probably just last _past_ a sleep attack. That...was a thing he could maybe do.

" _I know you are, Sans._ " And then, the smaller skeleton was able to feel fur and pads on the top of his head, lightly scratching.

"Cheaters." And, really. He hadn't stood a chance.

It seemed they got to Mettaton's next _performance_ sooner than expected. Frisk only looked up at the tin box before laying her head back down against Toriel. She was so not dealing with this, right now. Sans, also in Toriel's arms, hadn't even bothered to _twitch_.

"Alright! Time to _crush the robot_!" Undyne seemed very enthusiastic about ripping Mettaton apart, a small feeling inside her telling her that this fiend had done a terrible wrong to her. Somehow.

It was, surprisingly, Papyrus who stood in front of Undyne, arms held out in a gesture of peace. "Undyne, no! You cannot crush a star who blazes so brightly!"

Mettaton rolled over to Papyrus, tilting their head. "Ooh, and the knight in shining armor comes to protect the local darling! Is this the part where I fall into your arms?"

Papyrus had perked up, his full and complete attention on Mettaton. "I really seem like a knight in shining armor?" That was close to being part of the Royal Guard, right?

"Why of course, dear! So charming...and quite dashing, too~"

"Ha, ha! The Great Papyrus is quite enamored by your praise!" A soft smile, voice quieting just a /bit/. "Although if I must say, from watching your shows, you are _much_ more charming than I."

"Oooh, but we both know that's a lie, don't we?"

"Dear Mettaton, how can one such as I _ever_ compete with one that shines as brightly as you?" Undyne and Alphys were exchanging a look, both rather baffled by what was happening and...was Papyrus flirting. _Papyrus_.

"Alright, would you say I shine like the moon does?"

"Well, you dazzle like it."

"Well, darling, the moon only reflects the sun. And not only are you a star, you are also _on fire._ " Sans suddenly woke up at that, narrowing his eyes at hearing a pun before nodding.

"I approve." He was then settling back down for more sleep because, yes, let Papyrus deal with this one. "Have fun flirting."

"Fli-Flirting?! Brother! I am not /flirting/, I am merely expressing admiration for one so incredibly amazing and ambitious! I, who wish nothing more than to join the Royal Guard, respects someone who is just as ambitious towards their own dreams!"

"Aww. Now I'm disappointed!" Papyrus looked slightly panicked at that.

"Wait- No- Did I do something wrong?!"

"Pap. He was teasing."

"...Of course! I was very much aware of such a thing!" A sudden gasp of _horror_. "Oh dear, are we interrupting your show?! Should we leave? I would hate for you fans or popularity to suffer because of us."

"I have a feeling this is making things much more exciting. Now. You wouldn't happen to have a human with you, now would you?" Papyrus paused before nodding.

"Ah, of course! My new tiny niece is human!"

"Perfect! Would you mind if I, ah... _held_ her?"

"Hm...I would not when you are such a good, honest, and trustworthy soul, but I believe Sans would be upset at having his nap buddy taken away!" There was no sarcastic tones in the words, just utter trust and belief.

"Aww... Aw, I want to keep this one!" On the robot's 'screen,' there was a heart that seemed to pulse.

"...I didn't even know the screen could do that..." Alphys muttered, narrowing her eyes. As someone who had a long-time crush of her own, and a good friend to Mettaton, she could _tell_ "O. M. G. You're _serious_."

"Hm? About what, Alphy?" Alphys only gestured to Undyne, pointed to herself, then nodded, pointed to Mettaton, and then gesture to Papyrus.

"You're _serious_." That was a _serious_ crush starting.

Mettaton turned to her, a hand on his...hip? "And why wouldn't I be?"

"Metta. Be honest with me. Really. _Really_." Because they had enough 'girl nights' by now for Alphys to be sure that while Mettaton was an outrageous flirt, crushes and the like wasn't usually his thing. "I mean, go for it, definitely, but you can't tell me my surprise is unexpected."

"Well, I mean..." Mettaton only gestured to Papyrus, the cameras having turned off long ago.

"Hey, you do you."

"Ugh, tell me you did not just say something that stupid," Sans groaned, looking _pained_. "Alph, why."

"I thought you were supposed to be asleep," Toriel said with a quiet chuckle. Sans only hummed, nuzzling against her in a familiar motion, fond smile on his face.

"I was, but then I woke up." A pause, Sans glancing up at hearing a noise of _shattering_ from Papyrus. "...Bro? You okay?"

"Oh my god." He _had_ been flirting. And he was- What- Nooo. "I- Ah- It- Sans help."

"Mm, nah, this is too much fun." Revenge for all the teasing about him and 'Tori'. Eighty years wasn't enough to stop his grudge.

Toriel rolled her eyes, giving him a small nudge as she nuzzled back. "Sans." She set him down, taking Frisk from him. Sans easily relented and stretched a bit, looking more amused than anything.

"Right, then, let's keep moving. We got a Barrier to break, and all that."

"Break?!" Sans only pushed Alphys along, who was staring at him in shock and _what did he just say?!_

"No, no, it's cool. Just keep going with it, you'll see later. Pap, bro, either seduce the robot now or come on."

"Se _what?!_ "

"Exactly, now come on, you'll get another chance." And, really, Sans was enjoying the shock of his brother _far_ too much. It was so hard to make him blush, so this was even _more_ fun. And judging by the way Papyrus' face was a bright orange, Sans knew he'd done his job well.

Although watching them fall in love all over again was a touch bit amusing, he had to admit.


	8. Chapter 8

Reaching a familiar brick area with a post hanging up, Sans suddenly gave a vicious cackle of victory. _Revenge was about to arrive_. They had gotten through the bombs easily enough - Undyne had a lot of fun punching them to pieces - and now...now Sans could sacrifice his brother... "Hey, Pap? Why don't you go first? After all, you're the best at dealing with threats, right?" Sans sounded wonderfully sweet and innocent, smiling at his brother.

"Yes! I'll scout ahead and make sure everything checks out!" Papyrus was happily running ahead and on stage, Sans' grin widening.

Frisk looked up at Sans, shaking her head with a disappointed look. "You're more cruel than _I_ am- You're more cruel than _Mom._ " Sans only shrugged, looking unbothered by the accusation.

"You're not wrong. I blame the high LV and all that. Now, come on. We don't want to be late for the 'play'." ...He needed to stop taking things so seriously because now he was _thinking_ about his LV and, yeah...yeah... Bad thoughts.

" _What do you mean_ _ **high**_ _LV?_ " Sans only shrugged as the others settled into the theater seats, the 'play' already going on.

"I mean, high LV. It's like, twenty, or something." What a joy to have found out this his LV stayed consistent during Resets. "How did you not know that?"

" _...Because it's not?_ " Sans only blinked, looking startled before checking it himself - he never really _bothered_ to check - before quietly curling up in his seat, looking a bit startled and very grateful he had chosen a seat a bit away from the others.

"...It went down." Five. He had an LV of _five_. He...it wasn't so bad, anymore...

Gaster settled into the seat next to him, giving a small shrug. " _I had thought you'd known._ " Sans only silently shook his head, absently watching Papyrus and Mettaton on stage. It was getting to the 'dramatic reveal of the prince' part.

"N...No...I thought LV was permanent..." While he spoke, Mettaton was very dramatically exiting his square robot form to show his _true_ form. Sans was a bit amused to note that Papyrus was looking _just_ as he had when he realized he was head over heels in love with Mettaton the _first_ time.

" _You get more EXP as you kill more people, yes?_ "

"Yeah?"

" _Then it stands to reason you get less as you save more people_ _ **from**_ _death._ " Sans blinked, slowly nodding.

"So, yeah, okay. I'm just gonna sit here and be emotional, now."

" _Ooh, here comes the good part._ "

"The monster king! He cast a spell, to keep me away! I- I-" Mettaton was then - gently - falling into Papyrus' arms, looking to be asleep. There was a moment of pause, Papyrus looking to be startled before an expression of **DETERMINATION** was coming over him.

"Fear not, fair, beautiful prince! I will awaken you from this dark spell that the Monster King has put you under! For I, The Great Papyrus, will die before seeing his true love forever stuck like this!"

"But alas!" There seemed to be a narration in the voice of Mettaton, as the real Mettaton's lips weren't moving. "The human had no way of knowing how to wake his love. And it was then that he feared all their trials had been for naught."

"No! I refuse to let our love be in vain!" Papyrus looked _very_ serious, holding Mettaton closer. "I do not know if the tales are true, but I have heard that True Love's Kiss can break any spell! I will break yours, my fair prince!" With that, before anyone could react, Papyrus was kissing Mettaton right on the lips as best he could.

In the seats, Sans was quietly looking to Gaster. "Did you see _that_ coming?"

" _...Shut up._ " Gaster was glaring at Mettaton, his eyes flashing a small amount. " _If he knows what's good for him..._ "

"...Oh my god. Is he gonna get the boyfriend talk? He's gonna get the boyfriend talk, isn't he?" Sans looked exactly like the sibling of someone who was about to get a stern talking to, grinning widely and looking heavily amused.

Back on stage, Mettaton was awakening, pressing back into the kiss, sparks literally flying from how delighted he seemed to be. "Oh, my love! You broke the spell!"

"...Right. Yes- Yes! The spell. That is why I kissed you." A nervous cough, Papyrus' face _glowing_ with a bright orange. "Yes. Hm." The blush grew worse. "Is now a rather good time to ask you on a date?"

"Now, my dear, is a _perfect_ time." And with that said, they sealed it with a kiss, the play ending with the curtains falling down.

Frisk was cheering from the front row, everyone else a bit too shocked to do much else.

::

"So, did you find Pap-Pap?"

"Ah...sorta..." Sans coughed, scratching at the back of his head. "Preeetty sure they're backstage. In the dressing room. WIth the door locked."

"That _bitch_!" Alphys huffed. "He never even talked to me about this crush before doing this!" A pause. "Wait...were they..."

"More progress than you've made. And no, it didn't sound like it. It sounded more mushy and lovey dovey cuddling." A pause, and a considering tilt of the head. " _Maybe_ making out. I didn't exactly stick around, cause I kinda don't want to hear anything like that from my brother ever. _Ever_."

" _That's it._ " Gaster was stomping back stage, looking rather clear, even to Alphys, and incredibly pissed. Alphys only looked to Sans, who was looking a bit nervous.

"Ohho damn. Pap's dead." It was hardly a minute before they could hear _clear_ sounds of Papyrus saying 'ow' over and over. "Aaand there it is."

" _You sneak off with some boy you don't even- You met him two_ _ **hours**_ _ago, Papyrus! And you were in each other's presence for less than five_ _ **minutes!**_ _I raised you better than this!_ "

"He doesn't remember being raised by you!" Sans called back helpfully, and, damn, Gaster was _pissed_.

" _Don't get me started on_ _ **you!**_ "

"What did I do?!"

There was a dead silence before Frisk was snickering. "Ohho damn. _Dad's_ dead." Sans only crossed his arms with a roll of his eyes. The way he saw it, he never did anything _that_ bad that Gaster could get after him for.

Gaster was walking over and taking Sans' ear bone in his other hand, dragging the two towards the exit. " _Don't get me started on all the Runs- Do you know how many Loads and Resets there were because of your little judgment hall?! And the kill count! And then you had a child! Without telling me!_ _ **Out of wedlock!**_ "

"She was adopted!"

"Father, I love him!"

" _ **We're leaving.**_ "

"Well it's not like you can ground us!"

" _Don't you think I won't!_ "

"Metta! I'll be back for you, my love!"

"Papy! I'll wait for you!"

"Well, then..." Undyne coughed. "That happened...who's up for pretending it didn't?"

Alphys blinked in their direction for a moment before speaking. "Damn. He went _off._ "

"Yaaas. The bitches got _dragged_ , son."

" _Frisk._ "

Frisk only shrugged, looking up at Toriel with no hint of guilt. "Okay, but can you say I'm _wrong_?"

"You made a promise, though."

"...Fair point. I am very sorry for my words. Still. They got dragged across the _stage_. Literally and figuratively."

"You're not wrong."

::

By the time the skeletons joined back up with them, Papyrus had his arms crossed and was pouting fiercely, looking huffy while Sans was only a curled up little ball in his jacket, hood pulled down as he grumbled under his breath. 3/4 about what a _dick_ Gaster could be, and 1/4 swears on himself. Mostly to Gaster, though.

"The conquering heroes return," Undyne snorted, looking rather amused.

" _I hope you two learned your lessons._ " Toriel and Gaster said it in near unison, the latter blinking at her in surprise. Sans only made a pathetic whining noise, walking over to scoop up Frisk and cuddle around her, back to heading through Hotland and using the child as a shield and cuddle toy in one. " _Honestly. You're erased from existence, and this happens._ "

"...You were much clearer, earlier. I was able to hear you." Sans snorted at Alphys' comment, rolling his eyes.

"You'd be amazed at what he can accomplish when not only this close to the Core, but also very pissed off and in Dad mode."

"Yeah, Grandpa's weird." Frisk was snuggled up to Sans, watching over his shoulder carefully, scanning the ground.

"Also vicious. You cannot forget the vicious," Sans put in helpfully, yawning a bit. They were almost at the Resort, which would be great since he and probably everyone else were _exhausted_ from the long day of walking. The Underground wasn't _that_ large, but it was still enough to tire a monster out.

"You know, Daddy, you should nap. After all, you're always saying how great they are." Frisk looked near overjoyed by using his own logic against him. Sans only snorted, looking amused.

"And leave you up to whatever you seem to be plotting? Hm, nah. 'Sides, we're almost at the Resort."

"Who said I was plotting?" Not seeming to find anything, Frisk huffed as she settled back down.

"I did. Cause I know you." In a slightly lower voice, he added, "And you know he can't appear in Hotland too well. Not enough earth."

" _Still._ " She seemed a bit upset, but not overly so.

"If it helps you feel better, we're about to meet Muffet soon."

"...A little." After all, Muffet was an absolute _doll!_

"Good."

::

Sans had to admit he was rather amused at how so far they had gotten _everyone_ to come along on their little adventure. And it seemed they remembered a few things, here and there, about the past...not much, but feelings, and vague memories. And, really, now they just needed to work on getting Undyne and _Alphys_ to confess.

And, if Sans was extremely lucky, Gaster wouldn't find him wandering around the Core and digging inside the control panels while everyone else was asleep. " _And what do you think you're doing?_ " A startled squeak and Sans was yelping as he hit his head against the panel when jerking, huffing as he rubbed at his head.

"Stuff. Scientist-y stuff." _Ow_. "I thought you were back at the Resort or Lab or something?" He was easily disconnecting and reconnecting things, cords going in different places as compared to what they had been.

" _I was, until I noticed a certain little one missing._ " Gaster bent down next to Sans. " _So, what is it you're doing?_ "

"Some maintenance and rewiring for a very, _very_ long-term plan, but I kinda need the Core to give off more energy output than it is." A shifting and he was pulling on a cord and _biting it in half_ , and then stripping the coating with his teeth and hooking it up to different areas.

" _Sans!_ " Gaster looked completely horrified by the other skeleton, shaking his head. " _Why would you do that?_ "

"I just told you, I need the Core to give off more energy." A frustrated noise and a tug to one of the cords, Sans _ripping it from the wall_ , and nodding as he stripped the coating off that one as well before hooking it up to another output, wrapping the small metal wires around the others of a different cord.

" _ **Sans!**_ "

"Whaaat? It's not like the Core is gonna overload again, I made sure to do all the calculations beforehand."

Gaster was only trying to tug Sans away. " _And did you calculate the likelihood that you'll get electrocuted?!_ " Sans blinked as he was pulled out from the small space, cords still in his hands as he blinked.

"Ooh, you were freaking out about the cords. Okay, that makes more sense. Nah, they're fine. Stripping the coating is just more effective than anything else." He was taking a spare cord and stripping both ends, connecting one to a cord that led to the panel and shifting so the other end of the stripped cord was wiring into the top part.

Gaster sighed, shaking his head. " _This is because I always took you to the lab, isn't it? I'm a terrible parent. My own child is trying to electrocute himself!_ " Sans rolled his eyes at the dramatics, gathering up a few more loose cords and teleporting to a scaffolding far above the Core towers, shifting so he was tearing up the control panel of one and digging around in _those_ cords.

"For reference, you're a pretty perfect parent, and I'm not trying to electrocute myself! I'm working to do what I can with the limited materials I have."

" _And what about all Alphys' materials?!_ " Gaster was sounding exasperated as he easily followed after Sans, floating through the air.

"Nah, I don't trust the cording she makes. It's much more suited to robots like Mettaton, at least this stuff was made to withstand the Core and everything. 'Sides, don't exactly have the raw materials on hand to make more." He was already halfway inside the control panel and tearing cords with his teeth, stripping coating, and hooking them up to other areas.

" _At least don't use your teeth!_ "

"I didn't have any wire cutters," Sans shrugged, wiggling down into the control panel in order to grab an abandoned, disused _main_ power cord, tugging it out with a bit of trouble and _maybe_ almost falling off of the scaffolding before he was scrambling back. A moment's pause, and he was nodding. "Ha, I so got this." Honestly.

That boy was going to give Gaster a heart attack. Sans was only tugging at the cord, making sure the length was what he needed before he glanced to where the main controls were at. At least twenty feet away over the Core itself. "...Think I can swing over there using this?"

" _No, Sans._ "

 _Honestly._


	9. Chapter 9

"Ya know, there are a lot more people traveling with you than last time." A familiar yellow flower was popping up by Frisk's feet, who had gone on to explore ahead a little after they had left the MTT Resort. Frisk grinned brightly at seeing him.

"I know. Isn't it great? Do you think Mettaton will come with, too?" Flowey hummed, looking to be considering it before he was snickering.

"With Papyrus traveling with you? Even with the Reset, they remember things when it's someone they're really close with. How are you taking it, though? Probably not the best thing to realize no one remembers you."

"They don't, but...they also kinda do. And, it's nice. Like I get to start over with them." She smiled, looking more like the world-weary eighty year old, than the childish five year old. Which, of course, meant that Flowey was immediately smacking her leg.

"Stop looking old. You are literally five. Literally. You are _literally_ a toddler right now."

Frisk only gave a hand waggle. "Eh. It's kinda iffy." Another smack.

"Be the small child you are meant to be." Flowey straightened up, voice as serious as he could make it. "You have forgotten who you are, Frisk."

"What are you, Hamlet?" Frisk gave a small laugh, sitting down beside him.

"...Oh my god... It was just Hamlet with lions..." Flowey had a stunned expression on his face, looking as if he was experiencing an epiphany. "How did I never see that..."

"Duh." Rolling her eyes, the girl shook her head. "I thought you knew that, by now."

"How was I supposed to know! Who sits there and sees that movie and goes 'Oh, that's Hamlet.' No one, Frisk. No one does that." Flowey was pathetically flopping over her leg, whining. "Uugghh. What other movies have I missed that had Shakespeare references!"

"Probably like eighty six. You're not that observant." Frisk poked at one of his petals, smiling. "Adorable cutie patoot."

"Excuse you. I am a cutie _patootie_. Honestly, Frisk, _at least_ get it right." A stuck out tongue, Flowey batting at her hand when his petals were poked. "So, you're about to face Dad again. Think you're gonna be okay?"

"Definitely. Plus, you'll be there to help. It'll be fine. Hi, Mom, hi Dad." She hadn't even looked up or around. Flowey had only tucked himself a bit behind Frisk and _so many people._

"Yo. Catching up?" Sans looked like the situation was completely normal, more caught up in yawning and not trying to fall asleep where he stood.

"Yeah. Do we know where we're going, now?" She rose an eyebrow mostly to Papyrus and Undyne. "I know some of us are new." Undyne only stuck her tongue out, Sans snorting and looking amused.

"Vicious, you are. Yeah, we'll be there in about an hour tops." A glance to Flowey, Sans looking a touch concerned. "You gonna be okay?" They had talked it out and it was agreed Flowey - _Asriel_ \- would do what he had done last time. But he could still be a bit concerned, he had actually grown to like the weed. Frisk gave Flowey a small nudge, smiling at him encouragingly. Things would turn out fine.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. After all, worked last time," Flowey grinned, nudging back at Frisk. "Have fun." With that, he was disappearing back into the ground, already on his way to prepare for his own part.

Frisk easily stood, brushing herself off and looking unbothered. She looked up, noticing their looks, especially Toriel's. "What?"

"Yeaaah, that'll be normal enough, in time," Sans waved off, scooping Frisk up and continuing on the path. "You get used to it."

"I can't even tell who you're talking to, at this point."

"Ya know, neither can I, and it's probably better that way." A wicked grin. "Definitely more _funner_." A shudder crawled down Toriel's spine, and she looked to be physically in pain.

"Perf."

::

"Ya know, this place seemed a lot bigger the first time around, where there wasn't seven people running around," Sans mused.

"I know, right?" Frisk walked into the smallest bedroom in the house, opening up the boxes curiously, and yep. Dagger and locket. She paused, and pocketed the locket. Just for safe keeping.

"Oi! Stop acting lovey dovey and help find the damn keys!" Undyne's shout was clear to hear, as well as Mettaton's ruthless take-down of Undyne's _own_ love life. Which, of course, due to her fear of relationships, was nonexistent.

"It's alright," Frisk shouted to them. "I got one!" She left the room and grabbed up the hallway key. She paused, going over and standing on her toes to look at herself in the mirror. Despite everything, it was still her. The same five-year-old that she had been when this had all begun. The same age she would always start at when trying to do what was _right_. Or at least, what she hoped was right.

"Got the other one!" Sans chimed in. "Also, Mettaton, you have no room to talk. _None_. At all. You are just as bad as Undyne. You just hide behind dramatics instead of boasting."

"Oh, like you're one to talk, Mr. 'Always going on and on about the girl on the other side of the door!'" Sans only raised an eyebrow, raising his voice a bit.

"Hey, Tori!"

"Don't involve me in your arguments."

"No, no," Sans waved off, giving a dazzling, _honest_ smile instead of his usual smirks. "I just wanted to tell you that I'm in love with you."

"...What did I just say?!" Even though she was in the other room, it was obvious she was blushing, judging by how high her voice went. Sans only gave a happy hum, grinning at Undyne.

"See? Easy."

"Alright, listen here, shortie!"

" _The company you keep is always so classy and cordial._ " While they argued, Frisk frowned at the chain, keeping them out of the basement. Wait... She crawled under it, popping up on the other side.

Alphys, who had been curiously watching her, blinked before stepping over the chain as well, giving a slow nod. "That probably would have saved time."

"Probably a bit." She looked back over to the others, giving a small laugh. Papyrus was trying to hold Undyne back from _destroying_ Sans, who had a shit-eating grin and was very obviously signing his death warrant. Mettaton was only throwing his hands up and walking into the kitchen to keep with more _civilized_ company. Gaster had near the same grin Sans did, which, really. It was easy to tell where _Sans_ had gotten it from.

"So, ah, should we tell them?" Alphys asked, far less nervous around Frisk than when everything had started. It was hard to be nervous, after all, with so many crazy things happening. "About the ineffective chains?"

"Maybe. You _guys,_ " she said, raising her voice. She rose an eyebrow, gesturing to the stairs. "We can go, you know."

" _Or_ we can stay here and antagonize Undyne more," Sans pointed out, not even flinching as he was picked up by the hood of his jacket, Undyne having gotten free of Papyrus.

"Listen here, you little shit, I'm- You fell asleep?!" Sans was indeed asleep, completely docile in the hold.

" _He was up all night._ "

"Grandpa said he was up all night- What?! Why was he up all night?!"

" _He was doing work on the Core,_ " Gaster said with a shrug.

"The Core?!" This time it was Alphys speaking up, looking startled. "Why was he working on the Core?! Last time I asked him to come help do work he near had a _panic_ attack!" Undyne was only giving the skeleton a small shake, the skeleton doing nothing but curling up into a tiny ball in the hold. As response, Gaster only stared at her for a moment before giving a shrug. He then took Sans from Undyne, rolling his eyes. Alphys sighed and shook her head, and, really. Idiots, the both of them.

Sans was only shifting and curling up into a little ball in Gaster's arms, looking sweet and docile and, for once, not like a hell-raising demon from the depths of hell. Undyne blinked, backing away. "That's not natural."

" _Neither am I. Your point?_ " At hearing multiple snickers in the room, he blinked, looking startled. " _Oh. That's right. Other people hear my commentary, now_ /"

"Alright, alright, we had better continue," Toriel sighed, shaking her head with amusement as she nudged everyone along, unlocking the chains with the keys that had been found - might as well as get it out of the way now. Frisk looked up to Toriel, holding her arms out to her with a bright smile. Toriel chuckled but happily picked the child up anyways, nuzzling against her as she headed to the Throne room, the others falling into line behind her.

::

"Ugh, what even _is_ this place?" Undyne was rubbing at her eyes, the group having gone from the colorlessness of the Royal City and Asgore's house to the bright, sunny colors of...wherever they were. It was bright as _fuck_ , though, and very annoying.

"Hell." Sans' response was utterly serious, the monster rubbing his eyes as he walked, having been woken up from his nap when _another_ 'fight' had broken out. Ugh, next time this happened, he was forcing a 'Mettaton Quiet' rule.

"It's not _that_ bad," Frisk said with a small roll of her eyes.

"Nope. It's hell. I shall stand by that statement." It was almost funny, really... During Resets, there was so much that slipped through, or that he forgot, but with this place... He remembered every single moment, every Fight, and every death that had happened in this place. Both the humans _and_ his.

"Now you're just being dramatic," Undyne snorted, looking a bit amused. "Even you aren't _this_ bad, usually."

"Hey, you asked," Sans shrugged, looking perfectly at ease. Even if it was a complete act, but still.

" _So... How exactly are things going to go, this time around?_ "

Frisk waved it off, shaking her head and looking to be completely at ease. "It's totally alright. Flowey and I talked everything out. We have it planned out. Mom, Dad, you two just do your thing." Sans snorted, _remembering_ last time.

"This'll be fun, then." Although this time he probably would _try_ not to die of laughter on the ground in front of the King of all monsters.

"Totally." The girl hopped into the hall, about to step inside the throne room before she paused and looked down the other hall. She slowly started walking that way, tilting her head to the side a bit. If she remembered correctly...

Before Toriel could stop her, Sans waved her off and assured her it was fine, waving everyone off into the Throne Room before following after Frisk. Frisk walked into the coffin room, reading the label on the nearest one. Yep. Chara. Huh, a bit strange. Still, it made sense. She looked to the other coffins, narrowing her eyes. There...weren't name plates, or anything. With a huff, she was stomping back up the stairs. Maybe she'd have some words of her _own_ for Asgore. She didn't get very far before she saw Sans, who was leaning against the wall and contemplatively staring at the coffins before listing each and every name of the humans in order. "Most forgot them, by now...the first human to fall down here besides Chara was near fifty years before you showed up."

"They were still a _person._ " Sans only kept staring at the coffins, smile a bit bitter.

"Yeah...they were... The first human was Chara, who you know a bit about. The second one, though...wasn't as violent, but just...very scared of monsters... The third one was tough and strong, and really like Papyrus. Didn't back down from a fight or run, even when they should have. The fourth loved to dance. Constantly dancing, and adored Shyren when they met her. Good at dodging, but...not at taking hits. The fifth was _very_ much like Alphys, nerdy, sciency, and always trying to understand just what monsters _were_. A total dork. The sixth bonded with Undyne over cooking, if you can believe it. Loved to cook, more than anything, and was always lecturing about the proper way to make things. The seventh was as southern as you could get...but still a good kid, just trying to do what was right..."

"...When did the seventh fall down here?" Sans glanced over at her, seeming to be thinking for a moment before nodding slowly.

"About five or six years before you showed up."

Frisk's hands balled into fists at her sides. "And you were the only one that cared to remember."

"...They can't remember _who_ they were. They remember there were human children, and their souls were taken, but..." A shrug. "Something to do with the Resets...they remember the human child, but they don't remember the kid. Since I can remember the Resets, though..." Another look to the coffins. "...It seemed wrong to just forget them."

The girl turned to face him, looking up at him fiercely. "And why not?! Why can't they remember?! They had families- They probably still _have_ them!" She felt tears pricking at the corner of her eyes as she glared. "And they're just going to get left behind! They're never even going to get to _know_ what happened!" At least _she'd_ known what'd happened to her own...

"The families will know. Just as they did last time when the Barrier broke." Sans looked over to her, expression rather blank. "A few weeks after it broke I moved all the coffins up to the surface and tracked the families down. Explained what happened...I'll do the same this time, as well."

"Why do you even care so much?" Frisk gave a sniff, trying to hold back any signs of crying. It wasn't _fair._ None of it was.

"...They were kids." A heavy sigh, Sans looking older than ever. "The oldest was thirteen, but they were all...they were all just kids who were scared, and lost, and didn't have a goddamn clue what was going on. I was the one who _built_ the damn coffins and soul extractors and... The least I could do was explain to their families. Even the ones who weren't so nice."

" _ **YOU DIDN'T WHAT?!**_ " Sans blinked at hearing Toriel _screaming_ in rage at Asgore, slowly nodding.

"I'm gonna guess Gaster passed along the message about the names on the coffins- They are there, by the way, just...kinda hard to see." Sans vaguely gestured to the coffins, where on the side of each one was a name shakily carved, as if with knife to stone.

Frisk shook her head, brushing past him. " _Whatever._ " Because she needed to stop Toriel from killing Asgore. And she needed Toriel hugs. Sans only watched her go before he was looking back to the coffins, quietly sliding down the wall and scrubbing at his eyes again and he was just...tired.

"You know, now wouldn't exactly be a _bad_ time for fatherly advice." Although Gaster was probably still with the others, and he sure as hell wasn't going back up to the Throne Room for a while - eh, he'd just wait until Flowey and Frisk got the Barrier down, or something.

" _She just needs some time to sort through things on her own. Because of the Reset, she's also been returned to the emotional state she was at when she first fell. No matter how well she's been hiding it._ "

"Ya know, pretty sure you were in the Throne Room just a second ago." Sans was staring at he coffins, a rather blank look on his face. "I never really tried to kill them, you know... I always curbed my attacks when they started getting too hurt, and when I did slip up, I just... I didn't want them _dead_ I just wanted things..." To go back to normal. To be like they had been before humans had started falling down...

" _I know. And so does she. You are not the one at blame, for this. Were you the one that made the decision to collect human souls?_ "

"No, that'd be the one getting screamed at upstairs." Even with the attempted joke, the younger still wasn't smiling. "And I sure as hell didn't put up much of a fight, considering I built these damn things."

" _You know, I think it'll be another half hour before she finally calms down. Would you like to go and watch him get torn to absolute shreds in front of his own ex-wife, Captain of the Royal Guard, and Royal Scientist?_ "

"Well when you phrase it like that, _hell_ yes." Sans was standing up and brushing himself off a bit, blue energy gathering into his hands before he was hugging Gaster tightly, clinging just a _bit_. "Love you."

" _I love you, too. Now come on._ "

" _AND ANOTHER THING!_ "


	10. AUTHOR'S NOTE

The long answer is our interests are captured elsewhere and so we haven't had the motivation to work on UT. Partially because, looking back on the fics now, we've realized we want to rewrite them to make them less crackish. It may take a while, but that IS on our to-do list. However, it is not over of our top priorities. We thank you for your understanding and patience, and are glad that you've been enjoying the adventures.


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